Ohio St up; Michigan, Clemson still top 4

That team will likely be decided Thursday when MI plays No. 2 Ohio State, with the loser likely being the highest-ranked team left from the Big Ten, and therefore sent to face Washington in the Rose Bowl with the victor going to the College Football Playoff.

There was also a shuffling above Penn State as expected since last week’s No. 2 (Clemson), No. 3 (Michigan), and No. 4 (Washington) all lost, as well.

Alabama (10-0) remained at No. 1 in the ranking for a third straight week followed by Ohio State (9-1), MI (9-1) and Clemson (9-1).

It’s probably Louisville because the committee clearly doesn’t hold the Cardinals in the same esteem that it holds the other one-loss team that could wind up shut out of its conference title game. That was evident in their 62-22 blowout win over No. 17 Baylor last week. The highest-ranked conference champion from the Group of 5 conferences – American, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West and Sun Belt – also will receive a spot.

However, Michigan didn’t move at all in the rankings, staying at three. If the Tigers can beat Wake Forest, though, they will deny Louisville any chance at the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game.

LSU didn’t just beat the Hogs, they dominated them.

“As we looked at Ohio State, we see a very talented team that has three wins over current CFP top 25 teams”. The fourth spot started with Texas A&M, then went to Washington, and now belongs to Ohio State.

“Wisconsin wins out and they beat Penn State in the finals, I think Wisconsin would be in the playoffs”, DiNardo said. And although coaches on each team will warn against any extracurricular activity, an on-field fight wouldn’t be anything new for MI and Ohio State.

Going into Tuesday night’s announcement of the new rankings, there was no consensus on who the top four teams in the new poll should be.

MI and Ohio State are set for a knockout battle soon in all likelihood, with the rivals’ annual tilt coming to help decide the Big Ten East’s champion. One thing we do know, it isn’t like the committee has to get anything correct right now. I stand in awe of Nick Saban and The Process.

MI and Ohio State sport one of the game’s best rivalries and never skimp on entertainment or emotion.

Mark Snyder, George Sipple and Shawn Windsor break down all the latest U-M football news, from the loss at Iowa to the question mark at quarterback. Win out and the Wolverines are likely fine, but what are the odds of that? While the Heisman Trophy frontrunner was limited to season lows in total yards (298) and touchdowns responsible for (one), senior running back Brandon Radcliff sparked Louisville’s 41-point second-half explosion with a career-high three TDs and rushed for 141 yards, giving the Cardinals a pair of 100-yard rushers in the same game for a school-record third time this season.

For a team like Alabama, it is easy to rank them given their strength of schedule. Louisville’s was to a playoff contender (Clemson) on the road. If they were to win out and win the Big Ten Championship Game, they might potentially have a strong two-loss case for one of the coveted four spots.

Clemson, following a one-point loss of its own – 43-42 to Pitt, but at home – dropped from No. 2, making way for Ohio State.